For an intro class, check local darkrooms or photography stores. You can also learn a lot about photography from the internet. I don't know about colleges in your area, but the Academy of Art University in San Francisco is good.

SCAD, Savannah College of Art and Design is one of the best in the country. Its pretty expensive, but thats what loans are for. Just be sure thats what you really want. I would consider it "Ivy League", if there was one for the arts.

Plus, thats not terribly far from TN, if that would be an issue for you.

RIT (Rochester Institute of Technology) is world renowned for it's photography program. There are numerous alumni that have received the Pulitzer Prize and various awards for their work. I would like nothing more than to attend next year, but it is a very expensive proposition. Sort of out of my reach :/